Even if you have a large audience, it still pays to make your content even more visible online. Using relevant keywords in your blog posts is key to making this happen.
When your ideal client searches on Google or another search engine, they use specific keywords to find you. For example, “Business coach in West Palm Beach,” “virtual assistant niches,” and “how to use Google Analytics” are all real keyword searches.
Think about what you type in when you’re searching for something online. If a blog post includes these or similar keywords, then those posts are more likely to come up in your search.
Related post: How to Develop Your SEO Keyword Strategy
Knowing the keywords you’d like to be known for is critical to attracting “organic” traffic to your site, but that’s only one part of the equation. You also have to use your keywords strategically. Here’s what I mean.
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In Your Page Titles or Subjects
If you’re tempted to use cutesy, clever blog post titles, keep this in mind: The subject is the keyword field to which Google and other search providers give the most weight. Don’t waste that space with a clever or frivolous phrase. Instead, be clear and concise, and say exactly what your article or post is about.
In Your Sub-Headings
These days, we all seem to be in a hurry. We rarely read an entire article from start to finish. Instead, we “skim” it for the most important points before deciding if we want to invest the time in a complete reading. If your post or article is more than a few paragraphs long, be sure to include sub-headings to give the skimmers an overview.
Not only are you providing time-pressed visitors a birds-eye view, but sub-headings also tell the search engines what your content is about. Be sure to use your keywords strategically in your sub-headings, so Google (and others) know how to classify your posts.
Within Your Image Titles and File Names
Search for nearly anything on Google, and you’ll see images appear at the top of the search results. These images will almost always have file names and titles that correspond to the keyword you’ve searched.
You can, and should, use your chosen keywords by naming any images appropriately and setting the titles, and alt attributes to describe what the image is clear.
When You Write Your Meta Descriptions
The meta description is the snippet of text that shows up below a listing in Google and other search engines. With WordPress, you can either explicitly declare a meta description using a plugin such as WordPress SEO by Yoast or let Google decide what to use.
While the meta description itself has no weight when it comes to your search results placement, it can have a great deal of impact on whether or not someone clicks through to your site. Take care to write a compelling description that contains the keyword for which you want to be found.
Your Inbound Links
As you’re creating new blog posts and pages on your site, it’s a good idea to link from one to another. This serves two purposes: it helps readers learn more about a subject, and it helps the search engines find and explore other content on your site.
It’s helpful to use keywords as the anchor text for these links in both cases. It’s a clear declaration to both human and non-human readers that the content linked to is about a specific subject.
And, Your Content
It should go without saying that including keywords in your content is essential, not only for search engines but also for readers. However, you’ll want to avoid using the same phrase over and over again in your post as this will simply annoy your readers.
Instead, try to use variations of your keyword throughout the text of your article. You’ll engage your readers more and you’ll reinforce your main point with search engines, which are now smart enough to recognize synonyms and rank your content accordingly.
Don’t worry if you don’t get your SEO perfect right out of the gate. It can take time to optimize a website for search properly—and some would argue that it’s a never-ending job—but keep these 6 areas in mind for every post you make, and your site will be much easier to find in a search.
